Born Elizabeth Kowbus in Scotland, Betty Matear went to the Salvation Army’s International Training College where she met her husband John. They married in 1978 and had one son, John. For the first ten years of her service as a Salvation Army officer, Betty, together with her husband, served as a corps officer at Godalming, Reading, Hove and Chester-le-Street. In 1987 the Matears moved to Yorkshire where they served as Divisional Youth Secretaries and, from 1990 to 1994, as Church Growth Consultants. In 1994 Betty became the Divisional Director for Personnel at the Yorkshire Salvation Army headquarters, followed by a move in 1997 to the Salvation Army’s territorial headquarters serving in the Personnel department.